07.07.23
Chasing the Wind
Yesterday was one of the most challenging days that we’ve had on the bike, as we were chased for over a day by the Bura. You may not be familiar with the Bura, we weren’t, but from the time that we got off the ferry in Stinica, back on the mainland of Croatia, it started chasing us as we headed south. We did not realize how dangerous it was until we were pulled over at a police stop and they said in no uncertain terms, “You cannot continue; you must turn around and go another way. Two motorcycles have already gone down.”The Bura, which is sometimes called the Bora, is one of several “winds” in Croatia, and it is considered the most dangerous since it can blow up to 136 MPH. We were lucky it didn’t hit that, but it WAS moving us back and forth on the highway fronting the Adriatic, so when we hit the police stop we were forced to turn around and go UP and THROUGH that same mountain range that it comes from! I guess it’s considered a better alternative, but we crisscrossed back and forth up the most amazing side of the Velebit Mountain range until we got over it, and it still blew the whole way south, and even into today.
They say in winter it can last for days and it is very cold, and even in July the air mass was still chilly.
But we made it to our stop last night near Sibenik, and today rode into Split, probably the fourth time we have been here. When people have asked us where our “home” is, we usually tell them, “we have none,” but I recognize that Split, Antalya (Turkey), and Sarande (Albania) are pretty damn close to being almost like a home to us, so we’re in Split for a few days to appreciate the summer chaos! This weekend is a HUGE EDM concert, and the entire town is packed.
07.11.23
No matter how many pictures I post of these beautiful mountains behind the city of Makarska, they will not show the true grandness of them. The tallest one is 1762 m, just under 6,000 ft.The city is beautiful all by itself, but to see this enormous wall of rocks immediately inland just makes it all the more significant. The last few days we have spent in one of our favorite cities, Split, and we were also graced with having a room courtesy of our good friend, Maria Brooks. It was downtown and close to everything and considering the whole town was taken over by kids for a major EDM concert, we were glad to have a room! We spent several days with another friend, Sanya, and finally started working on our tans!
We’ll be in Makarska for a few days, then back to Split again for about a week. This morning we went exploring on a nice trail and found some beautiful beaches along with nice coves that were fully prepared for laying out towels. And the water was fantastic.
07.23.23
We will be leaving Croatia in a few days, but it’s been great! We came south from Slovenia, which we REALLY loved, and visited three different islands in the Istrian area. If you have never been to the northern part of Croatia, I recommend it! Meanwhile, I had time to do some video work, so here’s one of the Postojna Cave and Predjama Castle in SLOVEnia, which were amazing, and the other is on Kat and my first time spelunking in Pazin Cave in Croatia.07.24.23
“Some Like It Hot,” they say, but that does not include us! You are probably broiling under the same relentless sun if you are in most any part of Europe, or much of the US. It’s a July thing, with temps here in Split, Croatia, just under the triple digit (100 degrees) mark, 38°C, but things could always be worse! At least we are by the ocean, the beautiful Adriatic Sea, and to jump in the water is always an option.
How Hot Is It?
We are staying in Split longer than we initially intended, but that is working out well, since traveling right now is uncomfortable. We visited the nearby Kastel we originally settled in on our first visit in 2019, and it brought back some great memories for Kat and me, since that was our first introduction to Split, which we still love, even after this, our fourth visit. We haven’t been too motivated to do much, and since we know the town pretty well, there’s not much TO do, except for relaxing, catching up on things, and hitting the beach. So we’re not complaining.
Tomorrow we will finally be moving on to Bosnia, and after a few days cross into Serbia, and then back to Romania. We have about 24 days left on the motorcycle before we need to return it, so we are using it for all it’s worth! Today we went to a nice spot called Slatine, which is near the town of Trogir, one of the places we fell in love with during our first visit here in 2019. We found a nice area on the rocks and then met my cousin Michael and his wife Cheryl for dinner, which was awesome since they had never met Kathleen.
